Sibling rivalry
by mixkst
Summary: Mike falls prey to Bruce, Blaine's older brother, and Blaine's world comes tumbling down when Bruce comes to McKinley as a substitute teacher.
1. It all started innocently enough

It all started innocently enough.

On a November afternoon, right before the start of winter, Mike was sipping coffee by himself at a local cafe, huddled comfortably in a plush booth with a book in hand, sometimes looking up from the worn pages to peer through the glass window that gave view onto the cold streets outside.

"Hello there."

The voice abruptly yanked Mike away from his reverie and back to the real world, making him look up at one young looking man who had sat down across from him with a fresh cup of coffee put down on the table.

"Hello?" Mike gave the guy an inquisitive look, marking his page down before closing his book.

"I'm Bruce," Mike was offered a hand and hesitantly shook it.

"I'm Mike," he returned, wondering whether he should've been worried about a stranger accosting him like this. Bruce—if that was his real name—looked quite handsome, quite refined for someone his age. His style in clothing resembled Mike's very much; Bruce was wearing a light blue button down shirt with a black vest and dark jeans. Most importantly, Bruce had magnificent, brown, silky-looking hair, something that Mike just could not look over. He had a thing for beautiful hair, he could not help it.

"Short for Michael, I assume? I like it," Bruce flashed him a smile, making his heart flutter ever so slightly. What was happening here? Was Bruce actually hitting on him? Mike always thought these kinds of situation only happened in cheap rom coms.

"Michael is my father, call me Mike," he said half-heartedly, actually liking how his full first name sounded coming from Bruce. He changed his mind almost immediately, "Or Michael, I don't care that much."

"I'm going to cut to the chase here, Michael," Bruce said as he leaned his elbows on the table to get closer to him. "I like you—"

"You don't know me—"

"And I want to take you to dinner tonight," Bruce finished his sentence, unfazed by Mike's interruption. It left Mike speechless as he studied the man in front of him. Bruce's gaze had a way of getting through to him in a way that felt familiar and mesmerizing at the same time.

"All right," Mike found himself accepting and the change in Bruce's features, the way his face lit up comforted Mike in his decision. "But I should warn you, I'm still in high school."

"You are? Damn, how old are you?"

"18," Mike answered as he studied Bruce's reaction. How old was Bruce, exactly? Mike didn't want to go out with someone too old for him. "What about you?"

"Then we're fine," Bruce seemed relieved. "I'm 22. And for your information, you look way too smart to still be in high school."

"And you're saying that based on what? If you say it's because I'm Asian—"

"I'm saying that based on what you're reading," Bruce cut him off, gesturing at his book. "Not every teenager reads Hegel."

"Oh."

"So, have I proved myself to you?" Bruce grinned at him, stirring up a feeling Mike had not felt in a while. Excitement.

"Yes, you have."

* * *

><p>They were all waiting on Mr. Schue who was ten minutes late for their session of the day. They had to discuss their set list for regionals and everyone in the room was getting antsy. Mike thought he was hallucinating when he saw the familiar figure enter the room, with dashing clothes and impeccable hair.<p>

"Hello everybody, I'm Mr. Anderson and I'm filling in this week for Mr. Schuester, who, unfortunately, is battling pneumonia."

"Bruce?"

Mike's exclamation was joined by someone else's voice, making him turn to the person sitting next to him, who was none other than Blaine. Blaine mirrored his look of surprise and suspicion.

"Wait, how do you know him?"

Once again, they'd spoken in unison, and it was getting uncanny. Then everything clicked together. Bruce Anderson. Blaine Anderson. Bruce mentioning he had a little brother. It finally made sense and Mike was embarrassed it took him this long to put two and two together. Bruce and Blaine were brothers, how did he not see it? To be fair, they did not exactly look alike. Bruce had a thinner nose and Blaine's eyes were hazel, not blue. Not to mention Blaine's curly hair.

"What's going on here?" Rachel spoke up, arms folded across her chest, her tone as demanding as usual.

"Blaine is my little brother, whom I did not know had left Dalton, this certainly is a surprise," Bruce said, looking straight at Blaine. Questions flooded Mike's mind, most of which were about the relationship between Blaine and Bruce. He looked back and forth between the two of them several times before settling on Bruce and meeting his gaze. They somehow both knew what the other was thinking. Teachers and students could not get involved the way they currently were.

"And I did not know you'd left Stanford," Blaine retorted, a little edge in his voice.

"I graduated, there's a difference," Bruce responded, his eyes not leaving Mike's.

How did this happen? Mike knew about Bruce graduating, they kept in touch quite regularly through text messages and a few phone calls but he had no idea Bruce would end up here, teaching. Bruce told Mike he wanted to go to grad school and be a writer. Mike knew about this and Blaine was Bruce's brother, which begged the question: how did Blaine not know his own brother had graduated?

"Why didn't you tell me?" Blaine asked on cue, sounding hurt and betrayed. Mike could only imagine how Blaine felt at the moment.

"I was going to tell everyone tonight," Bruce explained. It made sense, Mike reasoned. It was pretty big news, something worthy of being told over dinner to the entire family. He felt special though, knowing Bruce decided to tell him before everyone else.

They had not exactly told anyone about their relationship. They didn't hide it to the public eye per se, the few times they went out, they acted like a normal couple. They'd only been seeing each other for three months and both agreed there was no point in making their relationship public to their close friends and family—especially considering their circles of friends did not exactly cross, so their friends wouldn't know who they were dating—unless they knew they were going to work.

"And how do you know Bruce, Mike?" Blaine turned to him, making him freeze on his chair. What was he supposed to respond? He most certainly could not say he was dating Bruce. It would've made a scandal.

"I gave Mike some advice for his college applications, his tutor thought it best for him to come in contact with student," Bruce said matter-of-factly, ever the life savior. Mike always admired that quality about Bruce, about him always having an answer to everything.

"Why didn't you tell me—"

"All right, enough with the chitchat, we've wasted enough time," Bruce intervened before Blaine could pursue with the interrogation in front of the entire glee club. Mike was thankful for that.

* * *

><p>"Mike, hold up," Blaine called him as he tried to flee the room as soon as the session was adjourned. He'd expected this confrontation with Blaine. While everybody else had seemed convinced by Bruce's definition of his relation with Mike, Blaine had looked suspicious and had thrown looks at Mike the whole hour they practiced for regionals.<p>

"Yes, Blaine?" Mike turned to look at his friend, glancing quickly at Bruce, who was still in the show choir room while everyone else had left, asking for help.

"I want the truth," Blaine demanded, his tone neutral, bordering on sad, his eyes pleading. "How do you know Bruce, really?"

"Blaine…" Mike didn't know what to say. He hated lying and he didn't want to lie to Blaine. They had gotten close over the months Blaine had spent here at McKinley. He just didn't know how to tell his friend he was dating his brother. "Bruce and I…"

"We're dating," Bruce cut in, appearing beside Mike.

"You…you're…I mean…what?" Blaine stuttered, glancing back and forth between the two of them, the look of horror on his face a clear indication he was not taking this piece of news very well.

"Yeah, we met a couple of months ago at a café," Bruce added, shrugging nonchalantly. "Why so shocked, baby brother? You know I swing both ways."

"No, I know, but…" Blaine settled his gaze on Mike, his eyes filled with sorrow Mike could not understand. Why did Blaine seem so…pained?

"Blaine, are you all right?" Mike asked, truly concerned for his friend.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I uh…I gotta go," Blaine said dismissively and stormed off, urging Mike to go after him but Bruce's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Let him go, he'll be fine," Bruce told him reassuringly. "He's just being his usual drama queen."

"He's upset, Bruce," Mike said, reproaching the amused tone he heard from his boyfriend.

"And there's nothing you can do about it, trust me, I know Blaine," Bruce replied, smiling softly at him. God, Mike had not realized up until now how much he'd missed Bruce. The last time he'd seen him was during the holidays and even then, with their respective families taking most of their time, they managed to see each other a couple times. Mike caved and hugged his boyfriend, melting in his arms and nuzzling up against his neck. He would worry about Blaine later.

"I missed you," he whispered in Bruce's ear, running his hand through Bruce's unbelievably soft hair.

"I missed you too."


	2. Our first date

Mike was nervous. Scratch that, he was _panicked_. All it took was the reality of this date-with a stranger he met barely an hour ago-dawning on him as he sat at a table across from said stranger. Bruce took him to a French restaurant, a nice place Mike wasn't used to dine in and he felt like a sore thumb sticking out with his blue jeans and hoodie.

"Are you okay?" Bruce asked, reaching for his fidgeting hand to steady it. Mike allowed the comforting touch, inhaling deeply through his nose to try to calm down.

"Y-yeah," Mike rasped out. What was wrong with him? He wasn't that nervous a few minutes ago. Perhaps he hadn't realized just how big a deal this was. This was his first in a while-he and Tina had broken up a couple of months ago-and his first date with a guy. Yes, he'd definitely taken this date a little too lightly, Mike reasoned with himself.

"You look so nervous," Bruce's lips lifted up in a light smile, his eyes looking at him endearingly. "Is this your first time on a date ever?"

"No," Mike replied, a little more confident. "It's my first date with a guy, though."

"Ah, I see," Bruce said, not letting go of Mike's hand. They'd already ordered and were in that awkward phase where they had to pass the time chatting before their meal was served. "You're having your '_Oh my God, I'm gay_' freak out then, only you're not hungover and naked in bed with a stranger."

That last comment stirred a chuckle out of Mike, making him feel much lighter and serene. He saw Bruce grin at him, looking obviously pleased with himself, and returned it with a smile of his own. He could do this, Mike thought to himself. Bruce was nice enough and really easy to talk to, Mike found out.

"I don't think I'm entirely gay though," Mike said and took a sip of water. "I mean, I've never really been interested in guys before and I'm pretty sure I'm still attracted to women."

"What made you go on this date with me, then?" Bruce cocked an eyebrow, sounding genuinely curious.

"What if I said it was your hair?" Mike found himself flirting, the words slipping out so naturally it surprised him. This time he got a chuckle out of Bruce and it made Mike want to be the one who made Bruce laugh all the time. There was something about Bruce that just made him feel...comfortable, safe to be outspoken and a little freer with his choice of words. And he would be lying if he said he didn't find Bruce attractive. Right now, Bruce looked like a model taken right out of a GQ magazine cover. He may never have found himself particularly attracted to any guy before, but he was pretty certain he was attracted to Bruce at the moment.

"I'd say you have great taste," Bruce winked at him.

"In all seriousness, I think I agreed to go on this date with you because of your charm and...well, wit," Mike added.

"I always knew all these years in the debate club would pay off one day," Bruce said, earning another smile from Mike.

From this point on, as he looked into Bruce's blue eyes and intertwined their fingers together, he knew they would be all right.

They worked.


	3. Confrontation

Blaine sat through dinner quietly, as per usual, listening from time to time to his parents' praising their eldest son while hating them—all three of them—for torturing him. Especially Bruce. He did not think it possible to despise his brother more than he already did. Although it could not actually be labeled hatred so much as envy and jealousy. It's hard to get your parents' attention and approval when you have to measure up to someone like his brother. The prodigal son who was always top of his class and did everything their parents wanted him to do without telling him to. Not like Blaine. Blaine's above average grades and his singing did not impress his parents at all and they were more than disappointed when Blaine left Dalton Academy for a public school like McKinley—especially for Kurt—and they had not wasted one single opportunity to remind him that Bruce had graduated from Dalton as the valedictorian of his promotion. No one stirred such ambivalent feelings out of Blaine but Bruce. He loved and hated his brother at the same time.

Not to say that Bruce was not a good brother to him—he was, there was no questioning that and it made Blaine even that much bitterer. He'd almost always been there for Blaine, always supportive and protective. Bruce was the first person he came out to, the first person to accept him for who he really was. The first person who made it okay for Blaine to be gay. From the moment Bruce left for college though, Blaine was more or less on his own. As the years went by, text messages and emails grew scarce between them, what with Bruce being busier and busier along the years and Blaine leaving to Dalton.

He left the dinner table as soon as he could, excusing himself curtly and retreating back to his bedroom to wallow in his own misery. Mike and Bruce were dating. The news hit him like a slap to the face and still had to sink in properly. Unexpected was not even strong enough a word to describe the relationship that had secretly formed between Mike and his brother. There was next to zero chance for the two of them to meet, it almost felt like fate had purposefully crossed their paths and that thought made Blaine go even more insane. To think that Mike and Bruce were meant to be or some crap like that.

Once again, it seemed Blaine had read all the signs wrong, and that Mike really was acting friendly towards him. Nothing more. They'd grown so close and so fast that Blaine had dared hope something more than friendship could happen between them. So damn stupid of him. Kurt broke things off with him when he realized they worked better as friends and Blaine almost considered going back to Dalton at that point. He had invested so much in his relationship with Kurt that at the time, it felt like he'd lost everything. Mike's support was what eventually made him pull through and stay at McKinley. Mike had cheered him up and helped him in ways no friend had ever done before. He didn't fall for Mike out of nowhere. It wasn't a sudden realization that struck him like lightning. He had first noticed how agile and sensual Mike's body was when he danced. And then the way Mike's face looked infinitely younger when he smiled, the spark in his eyes that made him look playful and teasing—something Blaine absolutely loved about him. It was all those little details that warmed Blaine up to the idea, the beautiful idea of Mike being his boyfriend. He knew it was silly; there was no way Mike would ever feel this way about him, Mike was straight. He was dating Tina. And then Mike wasn't dating anyone for a while—or so Blaine had thought—and they started spending more and more time together, nourishing Blaine's over active imagination with hopes that things could evolve between them. He had been so wrong.

Blaine grunted as he crashed into his bed face first, unable to get the sight of Mike and Bruce hugging out of his head. Soon after leaving the choir room earlier today, he'd gone back to retrieve his vest only to see his best friend hugging his brother in a way that still made Blaine suffer excruciatingly. He wanted to scream his lungs out, get the frustration out of his system completely but knew all too well he would only damage his vocal chords and end up even more exasperated. His cell phone buzzed repeatedly, prompting him to check it. Five text messages, all of them from Mike. He ignored them and threw his phone on one of his pillows.

He suddenly felt his bed dip beside him and a familiar scent invade his senses, telling him his brother had sat down next to him. Awesome. Bruce was the last person he wanted to see right now. In his vulnerable state, anyone could figure out why he was so upset. Blaine didn't move, wiping lightly the rare tears that had escaped and put on his most neutral face, not moving to acknowledge his brother.

"You've been awfully quiet," Bruce pointed out, shaking his shoulder lightly. "Want to tell me what's going on?"

"No," Blaine mumbled into his pillow, feeling too weak and numbed by the pain to move and face his brother. He could not even look his brother in the eye right now anyway.

"Is it because of me and Michael?"

Damn Bruce and his uncanny insight. Blaine wanted to deny it but remained silent, giving Bruce all the answer he needed. Besides, Blaine's storming off earlier was clear indication enough that he had not taken the news very well.

"Look, Blaine, I know how…weird this might seem," Bruce started to say, heaving a tired sigh before continuing, "I mean, Michael is one of your closest friends from what I've gathered, and I'm his teacher now, which makes things even more complicated, I'm aware of that. But Michael is graduating soon so…I hope it's not too much to ask of you to keep this a secret? It wouldn't do too good for my resume, you know."

So Bruce didn't suspect a thing about Blaine's feelings for Mike, he learned with great relief. But Blaine didn't like the idea of having to protect their relationship when he didn't like it in the first place. Mike _was_ one of his closest friends though, as Bruce pointed out, and this was the least Blaine could do as a friend. He rolled onto his back, looking up at his brother who was currently giving him the honest to God puppy eyes. How dared he.

"Why didn't you tell me? About you and Mike?" Blaine asked him, the question having now gnawed at him for hours. Why didn't Bruce tell him he was seeing someone? Blaine could've known about this a lot sooner and not make a fool out of himself in front of all the glee club—who, of course, had loved Bruce and even gotten past the fact that Mr. Schue was gone for a while.

"Our relationship was mostly long distance, and I didn't want to say anything before knowing it could go somewhere," Bruce answered matter-of-factly before lying down next to him. Bruce's answer made so much sense Blaine felt like an idiot asking the question in the first place. It irritated him how his conversations with Bruce somehow always ended up like this. Blaine wasn't exactly an idiot, but Bruce always managed to make him look like one.

"Fine, Bruce, I won't reveal your dirty little secret," Blaine conceded half-heartedly, earning a little nudge from his brother. He could not deny this to his brother. "How long are you going to be at McKinley? And why McKinley in the first place? Why not Dalton?"

"I wanted to start fresh, somewhere I didn't know anyone," Bruce replied, smiling softly at him. "Guess that didn't work out. Besides, can you imagine working alongside your old teachers from high school? I can't."

"I figured you'd love it, actually," Blaine craned his neck to the side to face Bruce. "Mrs. Vanderhill kept asking me how you were doing every week."

Bruce let out a bark of laughter, free and joyful, the way Blaine remembered Bruce doing so often before, at a time when everything was simple and drama free.

"Ah, good old Mrs. Vanderhill," Bruce shook his head, a grin plastered on his face. "Does she still do that thing with her hair?"

"You mean that thing when she eats strands of her own hair?"

"Oh come on, she doesn't actually eat her hair, she just…puts it in her mouth," Bruce chuckled some more and this time Blaine joined in. As their laughter died down, silence fell between them instead and Blaine didn't know how to break it. He didn't have to, Bruce did.

"I really like him, Blaine," Bruce said, gaze fixed on the ceiling. His brother's admission made Blaine feel worse and guilty about the whole thing. Blaine wished so badly for his brother's relationship with Mike to come to an end that he'd forgotten his own feelings weren't the only ones at stake here. Bruce was Mike's boyfriend, not him. Blaine had no right to feel so possessive of Mike, did he? They were just friends. And for all he knew, Mike was very happy with Bruce. Bruce sure seemed happy, if the goofy smile he had on his face while telling Blaine his last statement was any indication.

"I'm happy for you," Blaine told Bruce, half-lying, half-sincere.

"Thanks, little brother," Bruce beamed at him, apparently not aware at all of the traitorous thoughts that were roaming Blaine's mind. How easy it could be to destroy them, just by telling the principal about the forbidden relationship. How he had already pictured five ways in which Mike broke up with Bruce to be with him or how he had imagined Bruce's crushed face when Blaine and Mike got together. Bruce had no idea. When did Blaine become such a great actor? As he snapped back to reality, to the way Bruce's too blue eyes were boring into his, Blaine felt terrible for being such a bad brother.

"No problem," Blaine replied, faking a smile as best as he could.

_I wish it was me though,_ he omitted to say.

_tbc_

_Here's the second chapter ! Hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think :)_


	4. Irreversible

Bruce was exasperated as he looked at his students, waiting for one of them to answer his question. Michael wasn't in this class, he was in the advanced Spanish class and it wasn't on until this afternoon. Bored faces, ignorant stares, no one to save the day. Bruce heaved a sigh and gave up on his students, deciding to keep on doing all the talking. He seriously started to wonder what kind of Spanish teacher these kids had before him. Spanish wasn't exactly Bruce's forte but he liked to think that he got through to his students, even a little. He had a great Spanish teacher back at Dalton Academy and he tried to use her way of teaching the language. It worked with him so he had good hope it would work with his students.

Lunch break could not have come sooner; Bruce was positively exhausted and thirsty. He had not anticipated just how tiring teaching could be and had a newfound respect for teachers all around the world. At least the students here were not too difficult to deal with—behavior wise— and he was thankful for that. Being here at McKinley was a great opportunity for Bruce to see Michael more often, yes, but it was also pure torture. He saw his boyfriend in his class, in the hallways but could _not_ touch him. It was only his second day and the temptation was already driving him insane.

He locked his classroom, briefcase in hand and on his way to the teachers' lounge when his boyfriend came into view. There Michael was, leaning on a locker, messenger bag in hand, laughing and looking as beautiful as ever. Bruce gave him a look, meeting Michael's eyes briefly—earning a quick smile from him—before breaking eye contact. But then Bruce noticed whom Michael was talking to. Blaine. They were standing awfully close to one another; too close for Bruce's liking. And Michael was laughing at whatever Blaine had said and Bruce did not like it at all. He kept walking, eyes straight ahead as he passed by them and ignored the flare of jealousy that was rushing through his blood vessels. Blaine and Michael were just friends. Nothing more. Except Bruce knew better than that. He knew something was up with Blaine, his little brother's behavior yesterday was more than suspicious, and Bruce was no blind fool. It bothered Blaine that he was dating Michael, more than it should have, but Bruce didn't say anything. He knew better than to upset Blaine. He loved his little brother, but boy was he susceptible. He just tried to remind Blaine that Michael was his, with that one simple line. _I really like him, Blaine_. He knew it would be enough to guilt Blaine into doing nothing toward his boyfriend.

He entered the teachers' lounge—which was bereft of people for now, thank God—and leaned back on the door after shutting it, eyes closed and head resting back against the cool material as he drew in a deep breath. It was harder than he thought, being so close to someone and not being able to interact with them. Well, he _could_ interact with Michael, but he'd have to come up with an excuse to talk to him, _as a teacher_. He wanted to have lunch with his boyfriend, but they'd both agreed that wouldn't be the smartest idea. On school grounds, there was no way for them to have lunch or to go out for lunch together discreetly, just the two of them. Bruce was stuck with the teachers' lounge.

The door moved behind him, prompting him to get out of the way and a strong voice addressed him.

"Hey! You the sub for Will?"

He turned to look at one impressive woman who studied him with a kind smile written on her face. Her muscled body was absolutely intimidating, Bruce had to admit, but the woman couldn't look any friendlier.

"Yes, I'm Bruce," he introduced himself and offered his hand to shake.

"I'm Sharon," she replied with an even brighter smile and a firm handshake. "How're you settling in? Not tired of your kids yet, are you?"

"I'm good, I've only started two days ago," Bruce replied, following her to a table and sitting down with his lunchbox. Sharon already had her meal set up, a dish of pasta so impressive in quantity it left Bruce wondering if she was sharing with all the teachers. But as it turned out, she was eating this entire dish by herself and Bruce kept a neutral face as he opened his own lunch box. As they chatted over lunch and were joined by the school's counselor, Ms Pillsburry—who, Bruce learned, was Mr. Schuester's fiancée—Bruce felt a little more at ease and found himself relaxing. He had a little apprehension about meeting the other faculty members and he was glad to be welcomed as warmly and kindly. So far he only had a couple classes in the afternoon, not a full day like today, he hadn't had the opportunity to meet any colleagues and even with the return of Mr. Schuester, he was told from the very beginning that there was a good chance for him to have another position at the school. That meant he'd stick around longer and have more time to spend with his family. With Michael. It also meant that as long as he was a teacher at McKinley and Michael a student, any hope of romantic interaction was scarce. He'd just have to wait for a few months, Bruce reasoned, a few months until Michael's graduation.

"Bruce, hey!" Mike knocked on the door to Bruce's classroom as the last student left, smiling as his boyfriend looked up at him from his seat on his desk.

"Why hello, Michael," Bruce beamed at him and Mike walked over to his boyfriend after making sure to close the door behind him, wrapping his arms around Bruce. It had been a long day and he had been looking forward to this moment the second he laid eyes on Bruce this morning. He was glad there was no club today and could afford to spend some time with his boyfriend.

"What do you have planned? I was thinking we could hang out," Mike suggested, not turning away from the warm embrace. He hugged Bruce a little tighter, nuzzling his cheek and taking in the familiar scent that Mike had come to associate with his boyfriend.

"Michael, we need to talk," Bruce's serious tone caused Mike to tense up, as he braced himself for the infamous 'talk' that that phrase usually announced. Mike just nodded in response and leant on Bruce's desk as the latter scooted over to make room for him.

"I don't want to make this decision alone, and I want to discuss this with you," Bruce started saying, having obviously noticed Mike's change in behavior. "Obviously this relationship is now more complicated, I want to know where we stand, considering the fact that it's not allowed by the school and might even be seen as statutory rape despite the fact that you are eighteen—"

"Almost eighteen," Mike blurted out, interrupting Bruce in his speech. He didn't know why he just confessed to that, his age having been something he'd tried to hide from Bruce for the very same reason the latter had just mentioned. Anxiety got the best of him, it seemed.

"Beg your pardon?" Bruce's eyes widened briefly and he was now looking at Mike incredulously.

"I'm not actually eighteen yet, I'm going to be in April," Mike bit his lower lip, looking down at his feet.

"Oh, okay," Bruce let out a huff that almost sounded like a chuckle. He looked at Bruce, trying to decipher how he was taking that new piece of information he omitted to tell him. Bruce looked ten years older at that moment, fingers rubbing at his forehead, worry written all over his face. "Well…you _are_ over sixteen, so I'm not committing a federal offense, at least. Why did you lie to me?"

"What do you think?" Mike returned, not liking the reproach in Bruce's tone. He never liked being reprimanded in general, but he liked it even less coming from people he cared—his father being the exception to that, seeing how Mike was used to hearing it from him. "Would you have gone out with me if I'd told you I was only seventeen?"

"Yes! Michael…you're so wonderful," Bruce approached him, hands cupping his face and lifting his head up for their eyes to meet. "I wouldn't have said yes unless you weren't legal of age and quite frankly, you didn't look like you weren't when I met you."

Mike put his hand over one of Bruce's, leaning in the touch as he whispered, "I'm sorry I lied to you."

"Apology accepted," Bruce smiled softly before leaning down to give him a peck on the lips.

"So…You were saying…?" Mike prompted, wondering just what would come of this conversation. Were they breaking up? He had high hopes that they were not, seeing how Bruce was acting right now. He couldn't possible break up with Mike when he'd just kissed him, right? Or does that mean nothing?

"I just want to know what you think about our situation, there's actually a lot at stake here," Bruce picked up the subject. "Your college applications, my career. It could all be ruined if people found out about us."

Bruce did raise a good point, something Mike had not thought about thoroughly. He just knew that it could hurt Bruce's career and future applications for grad school but hadn't seen it from this angle. His own college applications. Surely a high school student who sleeps with a teacher would not get into any respectable college.

"I…You're right," Mike agreed, not really sure what would happen now. "So…what are you saying? Are you saying we should end this?"

"I'm not saying anything," Bruce put a hand on Mike's neck, his voice breaking a little. "I just…God, this is hard for me."

It really was hard. Mike could see where this was going. They were rational people, Bruce and he; they both liked logic and reason. They both knew this relationship wasn't reasonable, at least not anymore. And yet Mike didn't want to end it, he wanted to hold onto Bruce for as long as he could.

"I know," Mike breathed out, soothed by Bruce's thumb stroking his jaw. "You know, we could still try to keep this a secret. We'd see each other on the weekends so that we don't take the risk of being seen leaving the school together. I could come over, people wouldn't question my visits to your house since I'm friends with Blaine."

"That…That could actually work…" Bruce trailed off, leaving Mike hanging with only the pounding of his heart in his ears. "But then no interaction at school, right? Just the strict minimum."

"Yeah," Mike found himself smiling. "So…are we doing this?"

"All right, yeah," Bruce embraced him in a tight hug, relief washing over Mike, freeing his chest from the heavy weight that had been wearing his heart down. Mike pulled Bruce in a kiss, not caring about their recent agreement. He needed that one last kiss for the rest of the week, to reassure himself that he still had Bruce, as silly as that sounded.

"I'll see you tomorrow in class, then," he said as their lips parted, resting his forehead against Bruce's.

"Yeah," Bruce replied, his thumb still caressing Mike's jaw, that one simple gesture a real anchor keeping Mike from walking away. His own hand came up to grasp Bruce's, giving it a little squeeze before Bruce finally let him go.

Mike grabbed his messenger bag from the floor and sent one last look in Bruce's direction before turning to open the door. As he pulled the door open, Mike's eyes widened in horror when Jacob Ben Israel fell onto the floor of the classroom, his fall indicating he'd been leaning against the door when Mike opened it. His heart started racing as his eyes fell upon the recorder Jacob had in hand, the realization quickly dawning on him. The bastard had recorded everything Mike and Bruce had said.

They were screwed.

**A/N: **Here's chapter 3! Hope you like it, please do let me know what you think :)


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